Who Pays for Diversity? : Why Programs Fail at Racial Equity and What to Do about It

Oneya Fennell Okuwobi

ISBN 10: 0520392221 / ISBN 13: 9780520392229

Published by University Of California Press Mär 2025, 2025

About this Item

Neuware - 'Oneya Fennell Okuwobi brilliantly uncovers the hidden costs of diversity initiatives, challenging the superficiality of such programs and the burdens they place on people of color within so-called 'diverse' environments with a powerful, evidence-backed critique. This book is an essential read for anyone committed to creating genuine racial equity in workplaces and institutions.'--Mary Murphy, Herman B. Wells Endowed Professor, Indiana University.

Seller Inventory # 9780520392229

Bibliographic Details

• Title: Who Pays for Diversity? : Why Programs Fail at Racial Equity and What to Do about It
• Publisher: University Of California Press Mär 2025
• Publication Date: 2025
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0520392221
• ISBN 13: 9780520392229
• Binding: Taschenbuch
• Condition: Neu

About this title

Synopsis

How diversity initiatives harm employees of color by turning them into workplace commodities.
 
Diversity programs are under attack. Should those interested in racial justice fight to keep them, or might there be another way forward? Who Pays for Diversity? reveals the costs that employees of color pay under current programs by having their racial identities commodified to benefit white people and institutions. Oneya Fennell Okuwobi proposes fresh and thoughtful ways to reorient these initiatives, move beyond tokenism, and authentically center marginalized employees.
 
Drawing on accounts of employees from across the workplace spectrum, from corporations to churches to universities, Who Pays for Diversity? details how the optics of diversity programs undermine employees' competence while diminishing their well-being and workplace productivity. Okuwobi argues that diversity programs have been a costly detour on the path to racial justice, and getting back on track requires solutions that provide equity, dignity, and agency to all employees, instead of defending the status quo.

About the Author

Oneya Fennell Okuwobi is Assistant Professor of Sociology at the University of Cincinnati.